I don’t agree with the powers those bills would grant. Corporate power is very hard to be held to account. So what is the solution?

I’m no economist (and I don’t pretend to be), but a momentary look at iTunes reveals the extortion going on. £9.99 to purchase an e-copy of a SD film, when the DVD in the three cases I looked at (Drive, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy & Melancholia) either the same price or cheaper on Amazon. There is more variation with HD quality, however. On iTunes, the price is £13.99. If just a Blu Ray on its own (Drive & Melancholia) it is cheaper, while with a DVD as well, Tinker Tailor Solder Spy is only a pound more (£14.99).

If I purchase a hard copy, not only would have something physical (which I personally prefer), I could rip the DVD and have it on my computer (and some companies now include a digital copy with the DVD &c), as well be able to play on my DVD player. So I could pay the same price for something with less usability?

But even then why do people torrent? Most of the people who I have talked to agree: a) in supporting things they like by giving them money b) only torrent to try whatever it is.

So why don’t distributers:

•  Include digital copies with physical copies
• Reduce the price of e-copies
• Allow to potential customers to view the first 15 mins of a film to see whether they wish to purchase the full film

I can’t imagine these would not be hard to introduce and could really help reduce piracy amongst people who feel priced out of the white market.

I had not rated Ed Miliband particularly. He seemed dull. He didn’t make me feel anger, annoyance, inspired, optimistic – I just felt a general sense of apathy. Sure, he said some things that were good, but it was always felt like it was on a bandwagon (Ed. – Don’t worry, I’m not defecting). However, his speech was interesting. I would recommend reading it.

Ed painted the picture of where we had come from post the Great Depression.Talking about the rebalance of the settlement after a major politco-economical event. Ed believes we are this sort of turning point again and I won’t disagree with that.

The three conditions for change are as follows: the breakdown of consent for the current settlement; ideas which can form the basis of the new settlement; a political coalition to make it happen.

All in all, right (but a tad obvious?). Ed detoured into a mini political history lecture, but then returned to the modern day. According to Ed, there are now three challenges we must face: squeezed income; working people taking on more risk; intergenerational regression.

A strong sense of responsibility is something Ed is very passionate about.

Ed eventually is an intellectual. An interesting political thinker, sure. I am, however, not convinced he is a leader. The challenges he lays out, he didn’t lay out complete solutions for them. That’s fair enough. Labour are still going through their policy review, but bankers’ bonus tax & reforming welfare are only partial solutions to generating fairness in society.

I also find his complaining about energy companies very insincere. This is someone who was Energy Secretary for 3 years; it sounds like he didn’t do anything.

In questions, he was attacked mainly from the left. I don’t remember there being any ‘right wing’ questions. However, he made some interesting remarks, including support for International Aid & “We are a far too centralised society”.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner continues to up the ante over the Falkland Islands. The last time I checked, the people of the Falkland Islands were content with British rule.

So when President Kirchner asks David Cameron to “give peace a chance”, there is a very simple solution for the Argentinean Government: Leave the Falklands alone.

There are two types of bad in this world: people who do bad things, and people who let bad things happen.

Syria has developed into a major world crisis. Over 2000 people, it has been estimated, have been killed since Russia and China vetoed the previous UN resolution on Syria in October 2011.

Failure to assist the Syrian people is damaging. And against my deeply held liberal beliefs.

Assad and the Syrian Government is on a warpath to crush any and all who oppose him. We must not let that happen.

Some may argue that after Iraq, we should not meddle in the affairs of other nations. However, after the effective use of military personel in Libya, which was ratified by a UN resolution, we must do the same again in Syria.

I would urge people to read a letter, which I have cosigned, here.

Nobody in this country under the age of 51 has ever been asked that simple question. That includes half of all MPs. We’ve been signed up to Europe by default: two generations who have never had their say.

Source

It is Liberal Democrat policy to hold an In/Out Referendum if there is another major treaty change. And if you hadn’t heard, there is a debate on holding on next week. Lib Dem MPs have a three line whip to vote against the motion. And I weep.

We may have a slightly nuanced position, but quite frankly, most will perceive it as Lib Dems are in favour of an In/Out referendum. And then we vote against a motion (and non-binding at that…) that suggests one. We’re cutting our nose off to shot ourselves in the foot…!

It may not be as high profile as tuition fees was, but it isn’t going to exactly help us win over the tabloid reading population. it would work very well in our favour to beat this drum. And we could beat it very loudly.

I doubt the Whips’ Office will change its mind. I just hope it does.

]]> http://yellowspectacles.wordpress.com/2011/10/20/a-european-nightmare/feed/ 0 hmatthews92 http://yellowspectacles.wordpress.com/2011/10/18/knocking-on-the-doors-in-the-sheffield-sun/ http://yellowspectacles.wordpress.com/2011/10/18/knocking-on-the-doors-in-the-sheffield-sun/#comments Tue, 18 Oct 2011 09:19:48 +0000 Harry Matthews http://yellowspectacles.wordpress.com/?p=56 ]]> It was a glorious summer’s day … in October. I was told it would be raining, cold, snowing and hailing up North. But still, it was an excellent day for a spot of campaigning in Sheffield.It was an Action Day in the Ecclesall Ward, and we were going to introduce a new candidate to the voters: Penny Baker. We were welcomed into Jon & Sue Clennell’s home and they were exceptional hosts. It is never simple looking after 24 people and making sure everyone is ok, but Jon & Sue did it with ease.

Our Crack Team in Sheffield

What struck me was how much the five students who had come down were invited in and welcomed so wonderfully. We weren’t treated as lesser beings – we were treated as people. It is a fantastic example of how Liberal Youth can and should interact with local parties.

So, after a quick briefing from Sheffield Hallam’s Organiser, Jack Williams, and after I had wrestled with a very strange clipboard, we were off, surveying and canvassing residents in the Sheffield sun.

Sheffield is supposedly built on seven hills, just like Rome, and that fact certainly makes campaigning a little more tiresome compared to my previous experience in a recent successful by-election in Eton. But never mind, our crack team, consisting of Jack, Helen Duffett (who had very kindly come up for the day from London), Phil O’Neill, Steve Ayris, Shaffaq Mohammed and myself, marched onwards. Having a lot of people means, surprisingly, you get through canvas sheets very quickly.

Working up and down the streets of Ecclesall, we didn’t get any slammed doors or anything you would expect – considering our poll ratings. And despite being a student, I didn’t get my political beliefs questioned. We even found one person who espoused the virtues of Nick Clegg and the Coalition on the doorstep.

I did have to pinch myself. I even met one Labour supporter who felt that if a Liberal Democrat held one of the other three Great Offices of State, she would be fine with the Coalition. (On a side note, it probably would be a good idea for Nick to have his own ministerial portfolio).

So after knocking quite a few doors, we headed back to base in the beating sun to grab some lunch and there was more to do. Off Helen, Jack & I trekked to another street, with wide pavements and even wider roads – it reminded me of American suburbia, with trees regularly spaced along the road and large three-bedroomed houses, with generous front lawns. If I didn’t know any better, I would have assumed that we were in Tory heartland.

But at the end of a long day, we had talked to 300 voters and delivered 900 local resident surveys; and as an added bonus, we even had fun.

Let’s just hope next time we’re treading the streets of Sheffield the sun continues to shine on us.

Have a read of any Eton-related post on here and watch this.

Mr Bone is only a little deluded. Fine, disagree with Eton and private schools in general. That is a perfectly valid point of view. But hurling offensive comments to children (and in one case calling for their suicide) and calling housemasters sexual offenders will get you nowhere.

Suicide isn’t funny and for someone who has attempted it (badly), I think it is hugely repulsive to encourage it.

And then to accuse people of being sexual offenders without a shred of evidence is equally horrible. (That’s also happened to me too.)

I doubt Mr Bone will listen. I don’t think he is capable of it, but I hope he may, when he next ventures to ‘the belly of the beast’ (a public road – how terrifying!), show a little more respect and decency to his fellow man. One can hope…

However, (and it seems almost always) we are rather slow in enriching our democracy, whether it be changing the voting system, reforming the House of Lords, or extending the franchise to 16 & 17 year olds.

It is something both Liberal Youth & the British Youth Council have campaigned hard for. Even our Leader, Nick Clegg, who holds special responsibility for political and constitutional reform, supports Votes at 16:

Yes I am a big supporter of votes at 16. The state can ask a 16 year old to fight and die for this country, why not vote too?

Although now a 16 year old can’t be deployed into active service, they can have a job, start a family and take responsibility for their healthcare. It therefore seems daft that the UK doesn’t follow the progress the Isle of Man, Austria and some regions in Germany in extending the franchise to 16 year olds.

Extending the vote to 16 year olds will also help to curb apathy – politicians will have to pay more attention to the needs of young people, rather than in previous years, go after Middle Class England. Part of why the riots happened is because young people felt ignored. Giving them a say over who governs them empowers them to take responsibility – something young people have lacked in previous years. It liberates them.

It’s a small change, but an important one. Let’s follow the Isle of Man’s example and give young people the freedom to choose their representatives.

Originally published on Lib Dem Voice.

We got a good ‘slogan’ for the speech (which I’m glad to see being picked up): ‘Not easy, but right’. We got a touch of Tory bashing, but far more Labour bashing. We got a strong sense of Nick’s liberal instincts, highlighting liberal policies in almost every department (Defence was a notable exception to that…)

This speech was not about winning people back over to the Lib Dem cause – it was about setting the groundwork for the run up to the next election and then winning back people.

And remember, we have been winning local by elections all over the country, from Eton to Cumbria. We may be down right now, but the liberal heart is still beating.

On fees, I felt Nick made a strong rebuke of what happened last November. The Government failed to get the key points of the repayment system out. It’s something I have been saying for quite a while now.

But are they next four years going to be any easier? Maybe. But what all Lib Dems need to do now is utilise the tools we have. Our conference sets party policy, which can in turn change Government policy and become law. Lib Dems need to focus on growth – we need a Liberal Democrat growth policy. We need to address the housing crisis we’re tumbling into. We need to work on how to dismantle the barriers that are before poorer children. The summer school programme is a step in the right direction, but getting in early will have greater benefits.

So it is time to go back to your constituencies and prepare for the long haul.

Torchwood is anti-business, anti-Catholic, portrays police as brutal, intelligence services as corrupted, Americans as trivial. Just saying.

And then Therese Coffey agreed with Mr Montgomerie thinking it was something CMS Select Committee should look out.

Can I just say: What planet are these people on? Torchwood is all about being slightly risque and a bit cheeky. Tonight, there were two sex scenes (1 hetrosexual, 1 homosexual). 20 years ago, maybe even 10, people like Mr Montgomerie would have been calling for Torchwood to axed.

Yes, the BBC receives taxpayer’s money, but it makes some of the best television in the world. Quite frankly getting 8 TV Channels, several Radio Stations, iPlayer and the copious amount of extra content on the BBC’s website all for £150 a year. That’s mad. And it is fundamentally right the BBC should push boundaries and offer a point of view in a science fiction program.

This sort of attitude to the BBC is astonishing. I’m pretty sure such comment wouldn’t happen if Channel 4 did something similar (they are also a licence fee funded broadcaster). I just hope the Tories are going to get real on the BBC and appreciate what a marvellous thing it is…

PS That’s my moan done for the night